Villagers witnessed three violent fatalities on Wednesday night at SeaBreeze Recreation Center and assisted with a homicide investigation, but no actual crimes were committed.
It was all part of a murder mystery night sponsored by the Duval Social Club.
Munching on sandwiches and potato chips, residents evaluated clues as they tried to solve the mock murders. Duval residents Renzo Ganassini, John Townley and Joyce Wilson assisted professional actors Kristie Fontelera and John Maynard and host Patrick McInnis in the production.
The evening began when an alleged assassin stormed into the room in search of her target. A detective burst in and shot the assassin several times until she limped from the room. One death down, two to go.
The detective, played by Maynard of Orlando, dominated the evening and offered more comedy than actual crime-solving. He circulated around the room, involving many residents in his jokes.
Several clues were found such as a cryptic note that read: “$50,000 or everyone will know what you’re up to.”
A woman was poisoned and a resident was stabbed to death in mock murders. The detective also called six randomly selected men to the front to demonstrate their dancing techniques. His purpose was to figure out the identity of a mysterious Chippendale dancer supposedly involved in the crimes.
When it was over, one table of residents was awarded a prize for having the best analysis of the case.
The event was presented by Keith and Margo’s Murder Mystery U.S.A., a company based in Maine that has produced more than 7,000 mystery nights worldwide since 1985 including mystery dinners at Maggiano’s Italian restaurants nationwide.
Based in Maine, the company is operated by Keith O’Leary and Margo Morrison, who have backgrounds in television and movie production and direction. Morrison writes the mystery scripts.